


Release

by Occasus



Category: Final Fantasy XV, IgNoct - Fandom
Genre: Blind Ignis, Fix-It Ending, Fluff, M/M, Older IgNoct, Older Ignis, Older Noctis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-28
Updated: 2017-08-28
Packaged: 2018-12-21 02:04:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11934033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Occasus/pseuds/Occasus
Summary: My delusional fantasy that Noctis survived endgame and is living and ruling as King with his friends by his side.He and his Advisor, Ignis, have grown quite close since the war ended. On long nights when stress and nightmares keep King Noctis awake, Ignis is there to help release the tension.





	Release

**Author's Note:**

> This is my very first fanfiction work, I'm always doing original things. This is also the first work I've ever been bold enough to post online. Enjoy! Feedback is wanted and welcomed!
> 
> EDIT: 09-24-17 Fixed some breaks as suggested. Please continue to give feedback of any nature.

The King of Lucis hung his head as he sat on the edge of his bed. Exhaustion was unavoidable with his schedule, however, late at night when it came time to sleep, no matter how tired he was, he could never settle his mind.  
  
Noctis sighed and closed his eyes. Tension was a tangible force, heavy across his shoulders as his brain swirled in a maelstrom of thoughts. There was so much to be done, and so much that depended on his decisions alone.  
  
He had saved his people and survived the impossible, but at what cost? Sure, Insomnia was strengthening under his role, and the citizens support and morale grew day by day, but it didn’t stop their ruler from doubting and wondering what if?  
  
Noctis thought often of his father, of whether or not he would be proud of the way he was leading and the choices he had made. He was constantly either worrying about the future, or being sucked backwards to the past, to the good times that his heart ached to revisit.  
  
Of course, there were good days. Noctis was proud of himself and how far things had come since the war had ended. He had plenty of things to be happy about and thankful for, mainly the endless support of his friends, who had all had survived the darkest hours of the war.  
  
The king straightened and inhaled deeply, looking out the bay window at the lights of the city and a full moon hanging high in the dark sky. He was indeed thankful for all the things in his life, but the stress of the throne took its toll, and even now a headache threatened between his tired eyes. He wished to sleep, but his brain was uncooperative, thoughts and images racing along at a breakneck pace, peaking his anxiety.  
  
Yes, nighttime was always hard. The city and the palace fell silent, and there was nothing to drown out the noise of his mind, nothing to distract him from the pressure of his circumstance. When he did sleep, he was often plagued by nightmares filled with daemons, and would wake up panting, drenched in sweat and trembling.  
  
“Another restless night?”  
  
The familiar deep voice startled him, and Noctis’ whole body jerked. “You have got to stop sneaking up on me, Ignis.” He relaxed and smiled as he looked to his Advisor standing in the doorway. Ignis crossed the room, one gloved hand trailing fingers along the wall. His footsteps were so sure, his movements so fluid that Noctis could almost forget his Advisor was blind. Ignis’ wicked intelligence aided him long before he lost his sight. Now that his lovely green eyes no longer functioned, that sharp mind was nearly superhuman. His other senses had heightened to make up for the loss, and he was acutely aware of his surroundings, enough that he could traverse the palace easily without assistance.  
  
“I didn’t intend to scare you, highness.” the older man said with a chuckle. He came to sit next to Noctis on the bed, testing the distance to the mattress with his hand before lowering himself. “I brought you something.”  
  
Noctis hadn’t noticed the cup and saucer in his hand, but Ignis reached it out to him, adding: “A little something to help you sleep.”  
  
The king took what was offered and stared down into the pale, fragrant brew. He smelled lavender and spice. “Tea?”  
  
“A special tea.” Ignis said. He leaned back on his elbows, and moonlight from the window fell on his face, reflecting off the dark wraparound glasses he wore. The rough scars across his cheek and the bridge of his nose were illuminated, a painful reminder of the costs of war.  
  
Noctis swallowed hard and looked away. He couldn't help but blame himself at times for what had happened to Ignis. He couldn’t imagine how his life would be without the man, they had grown so close in the months that passed since the war.  
  
He took a long sip of the tea, and the warm, rich flavor surprised him. “Wow, that’s not bad.”  
  
A smile played on Ignis’ lips. “It should also help relax you. I know what a difficult time you’ve had sleeping, recently.”  
  
They sat in silence for a long moment, before his Advisor finally spoke up. “You’re stressing yourself to death I fear.”  
  
“Mmm,” Noctis didn’t deny it, however he didn’t elaborate, nor did Ignis press him to. He finished off the last of the delicious tea and put the cup and saucer aside on the bedside table. He appreciated the gesture and the brew had been a delight, but it had done little to ease the tension straining his spine. He rested his elbows on his knees and hung his head again with a sigh.  
  
He was surprised when a hand slid along the middle of his back. Wordlessly, Ignis ran his fingers up to the king’s nape, where he applied pressure with his thumb and circled.  
  
“You’re terribly tense.”  
  
“Yes.”  
  
“Why?”  
  
That thumb kept circling, sending a chill down Noct’s spine.  
  
“It just gets to me,” he answered. His Advisor said nothing, but scooted a bit closer and brought his other hand to Noct’s shoulder.  
  
“You have to stop worrying about things that are out of your control,” he said gently as his fingers squeezed just above the king’s collarbone, the pressure moving down over his shoulder blade to where the tension was knotted hard as a stone. Ignis must have felt it, because he focused his attention there, putting a hand on either shoulder and rotating his thumbs over the exact spot.  
  
“It’s not something I can help.” Noctis murmured. The touch was calming, the steady pressure of those massaging fingers beginning to ease him.  
  
“I know. But you must know that we are all so proud of you, and that you are doing a wonderful job with what was dropped into your lap.” More pressure, the rubbing almost painful over the tightest spots in his back. But the muscles were loosening in response, Noctis could feel the tension unraveling.  
  
He let his head fall forward as those skilled fingers moved up his neck, pivoting just below his hairline on another knot of stress.  
  
“That feels nice,” he moaned as Ignis rubbed out a particularly tight point at the base of his neck.  
  
“Loosening up?” His Advisor asked, voice low.  
  
“A little.”  
  
“Good, let me take some of that stress from you.”  
  
Noct turned his head and cast an admiring glance at his best friend and right-hand. Truly, Ignis meant the world to him. The older man’s head was tilted, his unseeing gaze focused on Noct’s back and the task at hand. A little wrinkle formed on his forehead as he concentrated on feeling for the right locations to apply pressure.  
  
“I’ll have to return the favor,” The king said, then, “How did you know I needed you tonight?”  
  
“You always need me,” Ignis replied with a laugh. “But I can feel when the stress is getting to you, I can sense it. It’s like all the air gets sucked out of the room when you enter it.”  
  
His hands were back on Nocts shoulders, thumbs easing under the collar of his shirt and brushing over his skin soft as a whisper. It felt so good that the king closed his eyes and leaned back, his head lolling on his shoulders until his hair rested against Ignis’ chest. His Advisor shifted, changing positions so that he was directly behind Noctis, knees spread to accommodate the smaller body of the king.  
  
“You’re spoiling me,” Noct slurred, the massage turning his muscles and bones to gelatin.  
  
“You need to be spoiled from time to time, your highness.” Ignis said quietly, his voice directly next to Noct’s ear.  
  
“You can drop the titles, you know.”  
  
“It’s a habit.”  
  
“Sometimes I really wish I didn’t have a title. I miss when life was simple.” The king closed his eyes and exhaled. Ignis’ hands kneaded his tense shoulders, fingers curling over and back, over and back.  
  
“Now you know you’re far too extraordinary to have lived a simple life, Noct.” His advisor reminded him. “I think all of us miss things from before.”  
  
Noctis’s eyes rolled up, meeting the dark panel of those glasses. On a whim, he reached up and slid them off of Ignis’ nose. The older man jumped, startled, but Noct reassured him, “Easy, it’s me, I just want to see your eyes.”  
  
The corner of Ignis’ mouth lifted, “But I can’t see without my glasses.”  
  
The king barked a laugh at the joke and Ignis’ chest rumbled with a chuckle beneath him. But as he looked up into the other man’s scarred face, the jagged lines marring handsome features, Noctis felt a pang of guilt.  
  
Ignis’ brilliant mind sensed the shift in his mood. The pale green iris of his eye flicked down towards Noct’s face. “What’s wrong?”  
  
“Ignis, I’m really so--”  
  
“Shh,” his Advisor cut him off, “No more unnecessary worrying tonight, you’re getting tense again.” Those hands picked up where they left off, sliding under Noct’s shirt to squeeze his shoulders. The touch against his bare skin made him shudder. He turned his face into the side of his Advisor’s neck and sighed, his heart heavy.  
  
“Ignis?”  
  
“Hm?”  
  
Noctis swallowed. “Make me forget.”  
  
The hands hesitated, and Ignis’ chest expanded with a slow, deep breath.  
  
“I just want to feel something else other than… this.”  
  
Ignis’ face turned, his lips brushing the softest of kisses against Noct’s forehead. “Come on, then. Let’s go for a walk and get some air.”  
  
Noctis eased off the mattress, taking a step forward so that Ignis had room to stand.  
  
“Grab us a blanket,” his Advisor said, turning his face towards the window, “Are there stars out tonight?”  
  
Noct looked to the glowing moon, the heavens around it blinking brilliantly over the city. “Hundreds of them.”  
  
“Perfect.” Ignis patted around on the mattress, scowling. “Where did you put my glasses?”  
  
“Leave them here,” Noctis answered, folding a heavy blanket and tucking it under his arm.  
  
His Advisor sighed in defeat. “Very well.”  
  
“I like you better without them anyway.”  
  
Ignis’ fingers instinctively went to his face, stroking over the scars on his cheek. “If you insist. Let’s go.”  
  
They exited the room and headed down the hall without a word. The palace was dark and silent, it was late at night and the rest of the occupants were sleeping, leaving them a peaceful walk down the long hallway towards the stairs. Noctis reached and took Ignis’ hand as they went, and the older man turned his palm so their fingers could intertwine.  
  
“Stairs,” Noctis gently reminded as they approached the staircase, so that Ignis would know his terrain was about to change. He had traversed them so many times that as long as he knew where they began, he had no trouble navigating them, and they descended with synchronized steps. Ignis never touched the bannister, Noct’s hand was the only tether he needed.  
  
Slipping out into the garden, the pair was greeted by a chilly night breeze and the sound of crickets. It reminded Noctis of his youth, when he would run wildly through the garden in a one-sided game of hide-and-seek, Ignis or Gladio squawking behind him to “be careful!” or “come back!” Often they’d have to come looking for him, which resulted in him getting into trouble, but it was worth it to see Ignis disheveled and flustered, or Gladio lose his composure and have to bite his tongue.  
  
“What are you thinking about?” Ignis asked as they approached the edge of the pond.  
  
Noct released his hand and spread the blanket out over the damp grass. “Just reminiscing.” He mumbled, lowering himself onto the soft fabric. “Come on, I’ve got our blanket ready.”  
  
Ignis gracefully dropped next to him, lying back on his elbows with one leg straightened and one knee bent. He inhaled the night air and let it out on a satisfied sigh. “A bit chilly, but it’s lovely out.”  
  
Noctis picked up a stone and threw it, skipping it off the surface of the pond disrupting the moon’s perfect reflection. It sank with a plink after three hops. “Kinda feels like camping again.”  
  
Ignis grinned. “Ah yes, the days of sleeping bags and cup noodles.”  
  
“I miss cup noodles.”  
  
His Advisor snorted in disgust. “I make you gourmet meals on a daily basis and you miss cup noodles.”  
  
The king flopped back onto the blanket and folded his hands over his stomach. He stared up at the starry sky and was sucked back in time, to sitting by the fire on night’s like tonight, joking with Prom and Gladio while Ignis scolded them for staying up too late and losing sleep.  
  
“I miss all of it.” He admitted. Anxiety creeped back in, making his chest feel tight. Any time he thought of the past or the future, the heavy weight would settle back between his shoulder blades.  
  
“You’re worrying again.”  
  
“There’s just so much that could have gone differently.”  
  
Ignis sat up, balancing his elbow on his knee. Despite his blindness, he seemed to focus on Noctis’ face when he said, “With respect your highness, I am personally thankful for how things turned out.” He looked away, his jaw flexing with tension. When he spoke again, his voice was tight and reedy with emotion. “I thought I’d lost you, you know.”  
  
Noctis rolled over and propped up, his fist on his cheek. “Ignis--”  
  
“I think that’s why I lost my sight before you left us for those years. I think the gods were preparing me, doing me a favor because they knew I couldn’t handle… seeing you like that at the end.” He cleared his throat.  
  
Noctis reached out and stroked the older man’s side. “Don’t think about that. I’m here.”  
  
“It’s important for you to know you aren’t the only one with pain. I bear it with you. I have known no pain like that day, when I held you limp and lifeless--” he cut off abruptly, the memories too much.  
  
Noctis moved closer to him, until they were sitting flush together hip to hip, and he leaned his head onto Ignis’ shoulder. He turned his face so that his lips brushed the hollow between the older man’s throat and collarbone.  
  
“You know,” he whispered against shivering skin. “We’ve felt so much sorrow and pain… let’s feel something else.”  
  
The steady pulse beneath his lips quickened. “Are you sure that’s what you want?”  
  
Noctis’ answer was to take Ignis’ face in his hands and press a kiss to his mouth. It surprised the other man, because he jumped, but then his shoulders relaxed and his hands rose, one going to Noct’s nape to cradle his head and the other snaking around his waist to pull him in closer.  
  
The king parted his lips and Ignis took the invitation, tongue stroking over Noct’s bottom lip and into his mouth. He wrapped an arm around his Advisor’s neck and slid himself up into his lap as the kiss deepened.  
  
“If we start, there’s no stopping,” Ignis voice was deep and rough against his mouth. He broke the contact for just a moment, hesitating to give Noct time to decide what he wanted.  
  
“Then don't stop,” the King answered. He grabbed the front of Ignis’ shirt and pulled him back down, crushing their mouths together once more.  
  
The same skilled fingers that had rubbed the knots from his back found the top button of his shirt, popping it open. Ignis didn’t need his sight to follow the hemn, undoing each button in quick succession until he was able to shove the two halves apart.  
  
The fabric fell from Noct’s shoulders, leaving his chest bare to the cool night air. He shivered both from the chill and the anticipation as Ignis’ hands settled on his waist. A gasp caught in his throat as those soft lips moved from his mouth, brushing his jaw before pressing a kiss to the hollow beneath his ear, and then moving downward, nipping and sucking at his neck.  
  
“Ignis,” he breathed the name as he was gently pushed over, and as his back hit the soft fabric of the blanket, he spread his thighs wide so Ignis could settle between them. Searing kisses trailed down his throat to his shoulder, the tips of Ignis’ hair tickling his chin. Those hands found the scars on Noct’s chest, fingertips tracing reverently over the jagged edges. The king moaned a soft sound and shuddered, the skin there more sensitive to the warm touch. Ignis stroked over every long, raised mark. He paid special attention to each one as he kissed Noct’s collarbones.  
  
“These nearly took you away from me,” he whispered as he smoothed his palm over the flat plane of the king’s chest. He brushed his lips over the uneven skin as he dragged his mouth back up, returning to Noct’s throat.  
  
The king's answer was a soft sigh, his hands raising to run through Ignis’ hair. He tangled his fingers in the russet strands and pulled the older man’s mouth back to his own, parting his lips with the tip of his tongue.  
  
For the first time that night, there were no dark shadows haunting Noctis’ thoughts. The storm clouds obscuring his mind had dissipated, pushed farther back the deeper he fell into the moment.  
  
Ignis worshipped his mouth with lips and tongue, those big hands continuing to stroke his chest, his waist. The king fisted the fabric of his Advisor’s shirt, tugging the tails loose from his belt so that he could rub his hands underneath, up the taught expanse of his stomach and chest.  
  
Ignis shivered in response to the touch, his lips parting and breath leaving him in a rush. His heightened senses caused the smallest of touches to light his nerve endings up like a circuit board, and Noct took full advantage of his position. He ran his palms up and down a tight waist to the subtle flair of a hip, where he pressed in with his thumb, teasing the hipbone lightly before dancing his fingers back up, the smooth skin raising with gooseflesh under his touch.  
  
It was delicious, Ignis poised over him panting and lost in the sensation of the king’s hands on his hypersensitive skin.  
  
“You are being a tease,” he ground out, head tilting back.  
  
“I like watching what such a simple thing does to you.” Noctis pressed a kiss to the side of his Advisor’s throat, tongue lavishing the tender place where Ignis’ pulse raced wildly. Another exasperated gasp from the older man spurred him further, and he nipped at the delicate skin. Ignis, normally so collected and calm, was undone, his powerful body racked with lovely shivers as Noctis and his relentless kisses moved from place to place.  
  
“I wish I could see you,” Ignis breathed. “It's been so long.”  
  
Noct watched the pale green iris flick around, iridescent in the moonlight as it searched for the face it would never again see.  
  
“I don’t look all that different.”  
  
“Still, I can only imagine the handsome man you’ve grown into.”  
  
Noct chuckled, “I bet your imagination does me justice.”  
  
“It could never be as good as the real thing.” Ignis kissed him again, sweeter this time, before he turned his body and carefully rolled off of the king.  
  
Noctis took in the rare sight of Ignis’ mussed hair and disheveled shirt and laughed.  
  
“What are you giggling at?”  
  
“Iggy… You look a hot mess.”  
  
Ignis grinned, color leaping to his cheeks as he smoothed a hand over his hair. “Yes well, that would be your fault.”  
  
Noctis looked up at the twinkling sky, a smile playing on his lips. Getting lost in Ignis was finding peace. As he lay next to the man that was his best friend and so much more, he felt truly happy.  
  
“Thank you, Ignis.”  
  
“Oh, but the pleasure was mine.” His Advisor teased.  
  
“I mean it.” Noct shivered, the chilly night air reminding him that his chest was still bare. He rolled onto his side and patted around for his shirt, shuddering as the breeze hit his back.  
  
“You’re cold.”  
  
“It’s fine, I just need to find my--”  
  
Ignis’ arm reached for him, pulling him in close to his side. He then pulled one corner of the blanket up, draping it across their bodies.“Better?”  
  
Noct breathed a content sigh, closing his eyes. He snuggled closer to Ignis’ warm body, until his back was against the older man's chest and his hips pressed into the dip of his pelvis. “Perfect.”  
  
“Are you sure? We can go back inside if you wish.”  
  
“No,” Noctis shook his head. Leaving their romantic little patch under the starry sky to go back into the confines of four walls was unthinkable.  
  
They lay peacefully for a long moment, Ignis’ warm breath deep and even against Noct's neck, and the king nearly dozed off. It wasn't until his Advisor spoke up quietly that his eyelids fluttered back open.  
  
“Describe the stars to me, Noct.”  
  
Noctis looked up to the brilliant heavens. “There's too many to count,” he murmured, “all just twinkling and winking away. They're… beautiful. I'm sure you remember the stars.”  
  
“Mm,” Ignis rested his forehead on the kings shoulder.  
  
“It's so bright out tonight, I'm surprised you can't sense it.” Noctis added.  
  
“I can only sense light patterns an extent. It's still a bit too dark out for me to tell.” The arms tightened around his waist. “Besides, they could never shine as brightly for me as you do, Noct. The only light I need.”  
  
Noctis smiled, his eyes fluttering closed once more. Lying next to Ignis, wrapped up in his embrace, the exhaustion from before crept back into his bones. Except this time, there were no dark thoughts disrupting his mind, nothing to stop peaceful sleep from claiming him. Ignis was his relief, his release.  
  
It wasn't until the first soft snore escaped the king's lips that Ignis shut his eyes and nuzzled his face into Noct’s nape. “Sweet dreams, your highness.” He whispered, before he too drifted away, holding tightly to his king.


End file.
